The present invention relates to pharology and, more particularly, to a device for illuminating or designating a darkened area or object with the aid of a multi-colored electroluminescent blinking light source which can be turned on and off at will.
The utility of illuminating darkened areas where it is difficult to illuminate by normal electrically powered means is well known. Some of the most common uses for self-powered light sources are military or recreational maneuvering, emergency marking for evacuation, light aircraft and helicopter marking and boundary markings for functions in addition to recreational uses. Portable flashlights are common, but their purpose is to focus light in a certain direction, whereas one of the major objectives of the present invention is to focus people""s attention to a location or object (or steer people away) which can be seen from almost any direction.
A popular source of light has been chemiluminescent lightstick, which emits light as a result of a chemical reaction. U.S. Pat. No. 3,749,679 to Rahut, U.S. Pat. No. 4,751,616 to Smithey, U.S. Pat. No. 3,888,786 to Maudling and U.S. Pat. No. 3,816,326 to Bollyky describe in length chemiluminescent systems. U.S. Pat. No. 5,190,366 to World describes a multicolored chemiluminescent fishing lure. The disadvantage of the abovementioned prior art is that the reaction is not designed to stop and cannot be controlled once activated and cannot blink or flash.
There are generally two types of chemiluminescent systems. The two component chemiluminescent system, means generally a clear flexible tube containing one component, with a frangible ampule housed inside the tube and containing a second component that, when said frangible tube is fractured, mixes with the first component producing light. An aromatic ester of oxalic acid in a suitable solvent (the xe2x80x9coxalate componentxe2x80x9d), usually preferably includes the first component of a two component chemiluminescent system. A solution of a hydrogen peroxide compound, a hydroperoxide compound, or a peroxide compound in a suitable solvent (the xe2x80x9cperoxide componentxe2x80x9d), usually preferably comprises the second component of a two component chemiluminescent system.
The second system utilizes xe2x80x9cfrozenxe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9clow-temperature storagexe2x80x9d luminescent color tubes. It consists of premixing chemiluminescent components, filling tubing with the components, and immediately cooling and maintaining the tube at very low temperatures by the means of dry ice, low temperature freezers, or the like, to inhibit the chemical reaction until the tube is used.
The disadvantages of chemiluminescent systems are numerous. Amongst them are that some of the chemical components of the chemiluminescent systems are carcinogenic or at least unfriendly to the environment which could endanger users of these systems and the environment and that its state mode of use is, once the chemical reaction has started it is extremely difficult to stop it (unless freezing is used which is highly impractical for outdoor use), necessitating using a new light for every use. Additionally, if there were a need for various individual colors as is the case in many abovementioned uses, it would necessitate bringing many extra different colored lights into the field and they cannot blink or flash.
There is thus a widely recognized need for, and it would be highly advantageous to have, a battery operated, blinking, multi-colored electroluminescent light source devoid of the above limitations.
According to one aspect of the present invention there is provided a device for designating at least a portion of a darkened area. The device comprises an elongated body, at least two electroluminescent lighting elements extending along a major part of the elongated body, at least one battery capable of independently powering each of the at least two electroluminescent lighting elements, and a switch arrangement. The switch arrangement is capable of actuating at least two different combinations selected from the group consisting of all of the electroluminescent lighting elements off, at least one of the electroluminescent lighting elements off, at least one of the electroluminescent lighting elements on and all of the electroluminescent lighting elements on, wherein light emanating from the device is visible to an observer positioned at a distance from the device.
According to another aspect of the present invention there is provided a device for illuminating a darkened area. The device comprises an elongated body, at least two electroluminescent lighting elements extending along a major part of the elongated body, at least one battery capable of powering the at least two electroluminescent lighting elements and a switch arrangement. The switch arrangement is capable of actuating at least two different combinations selected from the group consisting of all of the electroluminescent lighting elements off, at least one of the electroluminescent lighting elements off, at least one of the electroluminescent lighting elements on and all of the electroluminescent lighting elements on, wherein light radiation emanating from the device allows an observer to perceive at least one feature of the darkened area.
According to further features in preferred embodiments of the invention described below, the device further includes an inverter capable of causing at least one of the electroluminescent lighting elements to switch from off to on with a defined periodicity.
According to still further features in preferred embodiments of the invention described below, the defined periodicity is adjustable.
According to still further features in preferred embodiments of the invention described below, the device is operated by a remote control mechanism.
According to still further features in the described preferred embodiments, a light originating from a lighting element of the at least two lighting elements is apparently colored when viewed at a distance from the device.
According to still further features in the described preferred embodiments, the elongated body is hollow to allow longitudinal deployment of the at least two electroluminescent lighting elements and includes a lateral end and a distal end.
According to still further features in the described preferred embodiments, the at least two electroluminescent lighting elements run parallel from the lateral end to the distal end of the elongated body.
According to still further features in the described preferred embodiments, the apparently colored lighting elements are colored with colors selected from the group consisting of red, green and yellow.
According to still further features in the described preferred embodiments, the device is used to designate at least one subject selected from a group consisting of an object, a destination, an aircraft and a boundary of an area.
According to still further features in the described preferred embodiments, a plurality of devices are operable by a single remote control mechanism.
The present invention successfully addresses the shortcomings of the presently known configurations by providing a device for designating at least a portion of a darkened area with at least two blinking, colored battery powered electroluminescent lighting elements.